How to make your teacher fall in love with you

Chapter 3

Chapter 3- Mr James's POV

When I got back home later in the day, I still couldn't take her image off my mind. And it wasn't right, it really wasn't. I knew the rules of teaching, and they included that you keep a distance from your students. And that's what I needed to do.

Remembering that Beth was coming over for dinner later, I took a quick shower, and started cooking. I was quite a good cook, and in a few minutes I came up with the idea of creating a chicken caesar salad, which I knew Beth loved. It was my way of apologizing to her for being so mean in the morning.

Beth was really a nice person, and I admit that I really did like her when I asked her out for the first time right before we finished school. But the problem was, she got a bit too clingy after that, and I felt that I didn't have the time for the kind of relationship she wanted. I avoided meeting her as much as I possibly could, and sometimes, I'd go days without talking to her, and ignoring her messages, but since she works with me, I can't really avoid her face anymore now. Teachers start work before students, and that was when we met again, after having drifted apart for around a month. And now, we have a date tonight.

I finished cooking and sat down on the sofa to watch some tv, and glanced at the clock. It was five to six o'clock, so she should be arriving soon, since we always meet at six. Time passed by though, and by 6.30pm, she still hadn't arrived. I shook my head and got up from the sofa, grabbing a pen and a piece of paper, and I started sketching. Looks like Beth's still angry at me... maybe she won't be coming after all, I thought. A few more minutes passed and I continued drawing whatever came to my mind.

At 6.45pm, the doorbell rang. I sighed and stood up, leaving the pen and paper on the sofa. I opened the door to find Beth, wearing a short black dress and looking a bit red in the face. "Hey," I murmured, leaning against the door frame. "I thought you weren't coming."

"I was thinking about it," she said, coming in through the door. I stood straight and closed the door behind her.

"But you're here," I said, wrapping my arms around her waist. I looked at her eyes. "Listen... I didn't mean to be rude earlier... you know how I am on the first day of..."

She interrupted me. "You treat me like shit," she said. "And yet here I am, always putting up with it." I opened my mouth to speak, but she interrupted me once again. "Forget it," she said. "Just don't do it again, especially in front of that annoying friend of yours."

I chuckled. "John? He's harmless."

"He's annoying."

I removed my hands from around her waist and started walking to the kitchen. My apartment was small, but I had everything I needed in there, since I lived on my own. I even had my own studio.

"Let's eat," I said.

We sat down and ate dinner together in silence After dinner, I washed the plates, while Beth helped. I leaned against the counter when the job was done, looking at her. "How was your first day of lessons?" I asked.

She shrugged. "Fine, except that my boyfriend refused to even kiss me during break time, and then he sent me away from his class," she said.

I laughed. "Your boyfriend sounds like a jerk," I said, pulling her to me. I kissed her lightly, and smiled down at her. "Better now?"

She smiled back. "Yeah." She kissed me back, and we sat down on the sofa to watch a movie together. After a few seconds I felt her shift next to me. I turned to look at her. She was holding up my sketchbook in her hand, which was open on the page I had been doodling on earlier. "What's this?" she said.

I glanced at the open pad, which has the drawing of a girl on it. Not just any girl. Ella. My heart sped up at the realization that Beth was asking me about it. I had stupidly drawn Ella and left the book open on it, thinking no one would see it.